NOTE: the following is from the pages of the NWS. The italics are the writer's.

Fri, 15 Apr 2011 07:45:00 EDTStrong winds wrapping around the Kansas/Missouri low will pull moisture north, ahead of a steadily moving cold front and helping to fuel the potential for heavy downpours within the thunderstorms. There will be severe storms today from the central Gulf Coast into the lower Ohio Valley. On the backside of this storm system, cold air across parts of the High Plains will shift east today changing rain over to snow with moderate accumulations possible from the eastern Dakotas into Nebraska. Continued wet weather can be expected from the Northwest into the Northern Rockies through Sunday (The Water Train keeps rollin') The majority of the heavier precipitation will occur today and tonight with a surface low as it reaches the coast this evening.

Wildfires continue across parts of the Southern Plains. ...Fires in Texas remain active, increasing in size, and causing smoke along roadways in the area, resulting in road closures. Homes have been evacuated. For Friday, extremely high danger for wildfires exists for the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, southwestern Oklahoma, and north central Texas. High danger for wildfires exists for eastern Colorado, the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, western Oklahoma, and much of Texas. Red Flag Warnings are in effect for parts of Texas, Oklahoma, and Colorado.

A deepening low will move across the north central U.S. through Saturday morning. Over the upper Great Lakes...precipitation starts out as freezing rain, possibly mixed with sleet... Heaviest snowfalls are expected across northeast Nebraska, the eastern Dakotas and northeast Minnesota.

(note: the NWS Weather Hazards Map is down. Links will be provided ASAP)

Texans have been fighting over 80 wildfires in the last week, which have burned over 400,000 acres. Almost 1,000 firefighters from 34 states have responded.The West and Southwest are under posted High Wildfire dangers.This includes parts of Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma.Portions of these states are also under Red Flag Warnings.In addition, RFW are posted in Florida.

A Disturbance in the Southwest will travel to the High Plains today and deepen over the Central Plains.It will be joined by a large wave of moisture from The Gulf producing possible severe thunderstorms, with heavy rainfall. This moisture will move eastward and give the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic, and The South a wet, perhaps very wet, weekend.

A long trough is developing another Spring snowstorm that will affect the Upper Mid-West and Plains to The Great Lakes, perhaps bringing blizzard conditions to the middle of the country.Yet another system is entering the Pacific Northwest, dumping perhaps a foot of snow there in the higher elevations, before moving into the Northern Rockies.